My thoughts on the Phillies season.

Results tagged ‘ Martin Prado ’

A good performance by Kyle Kendrick goes to waste as the Phils’ bullpen gives up three late innings home runs, as the Phils lose in ten innings to the Braves, 4-3. They are now tied for first place in the East with the Braves.

The Phils took the lead in the fourth as, with a runner on second, and with nobody out, Ryan Howard hits an RBI single, scoring Chase Utley, who had earlier doubled, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead. Later that same inning, Phils’ starter Kyle Kendrick pitches himself out of a jam, as, with the bases loaded, via a single to Martin Prado, a double to Chipper Jones, which sent Prado over to third, and an intentional walk to Brian McCann, and with one man out, Troy Glaus hits into a 5-4-3 double play, wiping out McCann at second base. The Phils then increased their lead in the fifth as, with a runner on second, and with two men out, Utley hits an RBI single, knocking in Placido Polanco, who had earlier doubled, to give the Phils a 2-0 lead. The Phils would make it 3-0 in the seventh as, with runners on the corners, and with one man out, Utley hits an RBI force out, 6-4, scoring Shane Victorino, who had earlier singled, and then went to third on Polanco’s single, while wiping out Polanco, who had earlier singled, at second base. The Braves then came back in the ninth as, with a runner on first, and with two men out, Gluas hits a two-run home run, his second home run of the season, knocking in Jones, who had earlier walked, cutting the Phils’ lead to 3-2. The next batter, Jason Heyward, then tied the game up at three-all with a solo shot, his fourth home run of the season. After Billy Wagner pitches a 1-2-3 top of the tenth, Phils’ reliever Jose Contreras threw a 2-2 curve that Nate McLouth hits into right field for a walk-off home run, his first home run of the season, to give the Braves a 4-3 win.

Kyle Kendrick pitches a no-decision as he goes eight strong inning, his first good start of the season, as he gives up only four hits and two walks, while striking out two. Ryan Madson records his first blown save of the season as he pitches an inning, giving up three runs on two hits, both home runs, and a walk. Jose Contreas took the lost as he pitches to one batter, giving up a run on one hit, a home run. His record is now 0-1 with an ERA of 2.45. Tommy Hanson also pitches a no-decision, as he lasts only four and two-thirds innings, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk, while he strikes out four. Eric O’Flaherty pitches a third of an inning, giving up a hit. Peter Moylan pitches a scoreless inning, giving up a walk, while striking out two. Kris Medlen pitches two innings, giving up a run on two hits, as he strikes out a batter. Jesse Chavez pitches a 1-2-3 inning. Billy Wagner gets the win as he also pitches a 1-2-3 inning. His record is now 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA.

The Phils recorded nine hits in the game, with Placido Polanco and Chase Utley leading the team with two hits each, with both men recording a single and a double, while Utley knocked in two runs. Shane Victorino, Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth, Raul Ibanez and Juan Castro had the other five Phils’ hits, with Werth’s hit being a double. Howard knocked in the other Phils’ run with an RBI single.

The Phils (8-5, 1st-T) continue their three games visit with the Braves (8-5, 1st-T) with a night game tonight. The game will be played at Turner Field and will start at 7:10 pm Eastern. The Phillies will send to the mound their ace Roy Halladay (3-0, 1.13), who is coming off a strong win against the Marlins on April 16, where he went eight innings, giving up two runs on eight scattered hits, while striking out four, in the Phils’ 8-6 win. He will be going for his fourth straight win in as many starts, while trying to put a stop to the Phils’ present three games losing streak. The Braves will counter with Tim Hudson (1-0, 2.84), who is coming off a win against the Padres on April 15, as he went five and two-thirds innings, giving up two earned runs on six hits and five walks, in the Braves’ 6-2 win. He will be trying to match Halladay pitch for pitch. The Phils, meanwhile, will be trying to regroup after such a tough lost, and put a stop to their present losing streak.

For the second time in the franchise’s long history, the Phils have won their third straight NL Eastern Division title, thanks to the Marlins’ 5-4 defeat of the Braves in Atlanta, while the Phils crushed the Astros in Citizens Bank Park, 10-3.

The Astros took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with the bases loaded, via singles to Miguel Tejada, Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee, and with two men out, Hunter Pence received an RBI walk, forcing in Tejada, while moving up a base both Berkman and Lee. The Phillies would tie the game up at one-all in their half of the first as, with one man on, and with one man out, Chase Utley hits an RBI ground out, 6-3, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier doubled, and then went to third on Shane Victorino’s sacrifice bunt, 1-3. The Astros retook the lead in the second as J.R. Towles hits a lead-off home run, after the umpires had corrected their earlier ruling that the ball had stayed in the park via instant replay, his first home run of the season, giving the Astros a 2-1 lead. The Astros added to their lead in the fourth as Towles hits another lead-off home run, his second home run of the night, and of the season, making it a 3-1 Astros’ lead. The Phils then struck back in their half of the fourth. With two men on, and with nobody out, Ryan Howard hits an RBI single, scoring Victorino, who had earlier singled, and then stole second base, making it a 3-2 Astros’ lead, while sending Utley, who had just walked, to third base. The next batter, Raul Ibanez, then hits a grounder to the Astros’ starter Brian Moehler. Moehler immediately threw to second base, hoping to start a double play. Unfortunately, there was no one covering second, as the ball sails into center field, allowing Utley to score, tying the game at three-all, and sending Howard to third, while Ibanez would end up being safe at second on the fielder’s choice-throwing error. Jayson Werth then followed with a ground out RBI, 6-3, for the inning’s first out, as Howard scored, giving the Phillies a 4-3 lead, while sending Ibanez on to third. Pedro Feliz then followed with an RBI double, knocking in Ibanez, making it a 5-3 Phils’ lead. The Phils added to their lead in the fifth as, with a runner on third, and with nobody out, Victorino hits an RBI triple, knocking in Rollins, who had earlier tripled, giving the Phillies a 6-3 lead. Three batters later, now with two men on, as Howard was intentionally walked, and with one out, Ibanez hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Victorino, making it a 7-3 Phils’ lead. The Phillies would make it 8-3 in the sixth as, with a runner on base, and with nobody out, Carlos Ruiz hits an RBI double, knocking in Feliz, who had earlier singled, before being thrown at third trying to stretched his double into a triple, 9-6-5. The Phils then scored one last time in the seventh as, with a man on base, and with two men out, Ibanez hits a two-run home run, his thirty-fourth home run of the season, scoring Howard, who had just walked, giving the Phils a 10-3 lead. In the ninth, after Kyle Kendrick, the game winner, had pitched three shut out innings in relief of Phils’ starter Pedro Martinez, and Chad Durbin had pitched one scoreless inning, the Phils sent Scott Eyre to the mound to pitch his first game in several weeks. Eyre started the inning off by getting Michael Bourn to fly out to center for the first out. He then got Tejada to fly out to center for the inning’s second out. Meanwhile, in Atlanta, the Marlins were holding on to a 5-4 lead, with the bases loaded. After Brendan Donnelly was brought into the game to face Martin Prado, he threw a first pitch ball that got past Marlins’ catcher Ronny Paulino. But, the ball hit the backstop and came back to Paulino, catching Matt Diaz off third base. Paulino threw a strike to the Marlins’ third baseman Wes Helms, who applied the tag on a diving Diaz for the final out, giving the Marlins’ the win, and the Phils’ the pennant. Back in Philly, Charlie Manuel had come to the mound, taking out Eyre and bringing in Brad Lidge to record the final out. Which Lidge would do with one pitch as Berkman grounded out to Howard, three-unassisted, for the final out.

Pedro Martinez received a no-decision as he went four innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk, as he struck out two. Kyle Kendrick got the win as he pitched three scoreless innings, giving up only two hits, while striking out three batters. His record is now 3-1 with a 2.66 ERA. Chad Durbin pitched a scoreless inning, giving up only a walk. Scott Eyre pitched two-thirds of an inning, getting two fly outs. Brad Lidge pitched a third of an inning, getting the final out. Brian Moehler took the lost as he went four and a third innings, giving up seven runs on six hits and three walks, while striking out one. His record is now 8-12 with a 5.47 ERA. Wesley Wright pitched two-thirds of an inning. Samuel Gervacio pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits, while striking out one. Tim Byrdak pitched an inning, giving up two runs on one hit and two walks. Jose Valverde pitched a scoreless inning, walking a batter.

The Phils had nine hits in the game, with Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino and Pedro Feliz leading the team with two hits each, with both of Rollins’ hits being for extra bases, a double and a triple, scoring two runs, while one of Victorino’s hits was a triple, as he knocked in a run, while one of Feliz’s hits was a double, as he also knocked in a run. Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez and Carlos Ruiz had the other three Phils’ hits, with Ibanez’s hits being a two-run home run, as he knocked in three runs, while Ruiz’s hit was a double, knocking in a run. Chase Utley, Howard and Jayson Werth knocked in the other three Phils’ RBIs. The Phils’ offense came out swinging, finally knocking around Moehler in the fourth. With the clinching, Charlie Manuel will be giving some of his regulars a well needed rest, while trying to see if he can lead the Phils to the best record in the National League so that they can get home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Phils (92-66, 1st East) will conclude their four-games home stand with the Astros (73-85, 5th Central) with a night game. The game will start tonight at 7:05 pm Eastern and will be played at Citizens Bank Park. The Phils expected starter will be Cliff Lee (14-12 (7-3), 3.19 (3.28)), who is coming off a lost against the Brewers on September 25, where he went six innings, giving up seven runs on nine hits, while striking out six, in the Phils’ 8-4 lost. He will be trying to recapture his form when he first came to the Phils before the July trade deadline. The Astros will counter with Felipe Paulino (2-11, 6.51), who is coming off a lost to the Reds on September 26, as he went five innings, giving up eight runs on nine hits and four walks, while striking out three, in the Astros’ 10-4 lost. He will be trying to keep from being hit hard by the Phils. The Phils will be trying to balance resting some of their starters while at the same time trying to see if they can establish their post-season form.

In spite of an hour plus long rain delay, the Phils’ bullpen pitched brillantly to help the Phils’ defeat the Braves, 4-2. Their magic number over both the Braves and the Marlins have now dropped to six.

The Braves took a quick 1-0 lead in the first as, with a runner on second, and with two men out, Matt Diaz hits an RBI single, scoring Martin Prado, who had earlier doubled. The Phils would tie the game up at one-all in the third as, with a runner on first, and with two men out, Ben Francisco, who was in the game after Shane Victorino had been ejected for arguing a call by the second base umpire when he was thrown out trying to steal second, hits an RBI double, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier walked, and had been attempting to steal second. The Phils took the lead in the fourth as, with a runner on second and with one man out, Raul Ibanez hits an RBI double, knocking in Jayson Werth, who had earlier walked, and then stole second, giving the Phils a 2-1 lead. One batter later, Pedro Feliz knocked in Ibanez with an RBI single, making it a 3-1 Phils’ lead. In the fourth, the Phils would increase their lead as, with one man on, and with one man out, Chase Utley hits an RBI triple, knocking in Rollins, who had earlier doubled, and had gone to third on Francisco’s ground out off of the pitcher’s leg, 1-4-3, making it a 4-1 Phils’ lead. Then the game was stopped as the rain that had been falling all weekend in Atlanta had finally started to come down hard enough to have the tarp put on the field. The rain would stop almost two hours later, leading to the exit of both team’s starters, especially Phils’ starter Cliff Lee, who had been five hitting the Braves, keeping them off-balance since giving up the run in the first. The Phils’ bullpen then took over, shutting down the Braves for the next four innings, giving up no runs and only one hit and a walk before handing the ball over to Brad Lidge in the ninth. After taking care of the first two batters, Lidge gave up a walk to Brooks Conrad. After Conrad took second base on defensive indifference, pinch hitter Brian McCann knocked him in with an RBI single, making it a 4-2 Phils’ lead. But that would be it, as Lidge would then nailed down his thirty-first save of the year by striking out Nate McLouth.

Cliff Lee received a no-decision thanks to the rain delay, as he pitched four innings, giving up just one run on five hits, while striking out two. Tyler Walker picked up the win as he pitched two scoreless innings, giving up only one hit and a walk, while striking out three. His record is now 2-0 with an ERA of 2.35. Sergio Escalona received his first hold as he pitched two-thirds of an inning, striking out a batter. Clay Condrey pitched a third of an inning, getting out the only man he would face, collecting his seventh hold. Ryan Madson got his twenty-fifth hold as he pitched a 1-2-3 inning, striking out all three. Brad Lidge would record his thirty-first save of the season as he gave up a run on a hit and a walk, as he struck out two. Tommy Hanson took the lost as he pitched five innings, giving up four runs on seven hits and four walks, while he struck out seven. His record is now 10-4 with a 2.85 ERA. Kris Medlen, Boone Logan and Eric O’Flaherty combined for four shut out innings, giving up just three hits (one hit each) and a walk (Logan), while striking out two (O’Flaherty).

The Phils had ten hits in the game, with Pedro Feliz leading the way with two hits, knocking in a run, as he raised his batting average to .264. Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Ben Francisco, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez, Paul Bako and pinch hitter John Mayberry, Jr., had the other eight Phils’ hits, with Rollins, Francisco, Ibanez, Howard and Mayberry’s hits all being doubles. Besides Pedro, Utley, Francisco and Ibanez had the Phils’ other three RBIs. With the win, the Phils have won ten of their last thirteen games since being swept by the Astros.

The Phils (87-61, 1st) have the day off today, with their next game being tomorrow afternoon as the first past of a twi-night doubleheader with the Marlins at Land Shark Stadium. The magic number to winning their third straight NL Eastern Division pennant is now at six.

Two home run blasts by Ryan Howard and a pair of homers by Jimmy Rollins and Ben Francisco help lead the Phils to a 9-4 victory over the Braves. The Phils’ magic number over both the Braves and the Marlins is now at eight.

The Braves tried to take an early lead in the second with a runner on second and with two men out, as Tim Hudson hits a single to left field. Matt Diaz, who had earlier doubled, rounded third, attempting to score, as Raul Ibanez threw a strike to home plate. Carlos Ruiz, who was blocking home plate, grabbed the ball and held on to it as he tagged out Diaz, keeping the score at 0-0. Ruiz would leave the game later with a sprained wrist. The Braves then took a 1-0 lead in the third as, with one man out, Martin Prado hits a solo home run, his tenth home run of the season. The Phils then took the lead in the fourth as, with one man on, and with two men out, Ryan Howard hits a two-run bomb, his thirty-ninth home run of the year, knocking in Ben Francisco, who had earlier singled, making it 2-1 Phils. The Phils then increased their lead in the sixth as, with two men out, Howard hits a solo shot, his fortieth home run of the season, giving the Phils a 3-1 lead. The Phils added to their lead in the eighth as, with the bases loaded, via a walk to Jimmy Rollins, a single by Chase Utley, which sent Rollins to third, a steal of second base by Utley, and then Howard being hit by the pitch, and with one man out, Jayson Werth hits a two-run single, knocking in both Rollins and Utley, making it 5-1 Phils, while sending Howard on to second. The Braves cut the Phils’ lead in their half of the eighth as, with a man on base and with two men out, Brian McCann hits a two-run home run of his own, his twentieth home run of the year, knocking in Prado, who had earlier singled, making it a 5-3 Phils lead. The Phils then broke the game wide open in the ninth as, with two men on, and with one out, Rollins hits a three-run home run, his nineteenth home run of the year, knocking in Paul Bako and pinch hitter Matt Stairs, who had both walked, giving the Phils an 8-3 lead. The next batter, Francisco, then hits a home run of his own, his fifteenth home run of the season, making it 9-3 Phils. In the Braves’ half of the ninth, with a runner on second and with one man out, Adam LaRoche hits an RBI single, knocking in Garret Anderson, who had earlier doubled, making it a 9-4 Phils’ lead. But that would be the final score as Chad Durbin got Nate McLouth to fly out to left for the final out.

J.A. Happ received a no-decision as he pitched just three innings, taken out as an injury precaution, giving up only a run on five hits, while striking out one. Kyle Kendrick got the win as he pitched four scoreless innings, giving up three hits. His record is now 2-1 with an ERA of 2.70. Tyler Walker pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up two runs on two hits, as he struck out a batter. Ryan Madson collected his twenty-fourth hold as he got out the only batter he would face. Chad Durbin pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits, while striking out a batter. Tim Hudson took the lost as he pitched seven innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out three. His record is now 1-1 with a 3.70 ERA. Kris Medlen pitched a third of an inning, giving up two runs on a hit and a walk. Boone Logan pitched to one batter, hitting him. Manny Acosta pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up a hit. Vladimir Nunez pitched an inning, giving up four runs on two hits and two walks, while striking out a batter.

The Phils had ten hits in the game, with Ben Francisco and Jayson Werth both leading the way with three hits each, with Francisco hitting a double and a solo home run, while one of Werth’s hits knocked in two runs. Ryan Howard followed with two hits, both home runs, which knocked in three runs. Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley had the other two Phils’ hits, with Rollins’ being a three-run home run. The Phils’ offense appear to be now out of its slump, as the end of the regular season comes closer.

The Phils (86-60, 1st) continue their three-games visit with the Braves (78-69, 3rd) with a night game tonight. The game will be played tonight at Turner Field and will start at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils will send to the mound Pedro Martinez (5-0, 2.87), who is coming off a win against the Mets in the second game of a doubleheader sweep on September 13, as he pitched eight shut out innings, giving up six hits and two walks, while striking out seven, in the Phils’ 1-0 win. The Braves will counter with Javier Vazquez (13-9, 3.01), who is coming off a complete game win against the Cardinals on September 13, as he gave up only two runs on seven hits, while striking out eight, in the Braves’ 9-2 win. The Phils will be trying for the series win tonight, while at the same time trying to lower their winning number even more.

Two home runs by a presently red hot Ryan Howard and the Pedro Martinez/Jamie Moyer rain delay show in which the two combined to give up only one run in six and a third innings, as the Phils defeated the Braves, 4-2. The Phils now lead the NL East by eight games as the Marlins also lost last night.

In the second inning, the Phils took a quick 1-0 lead as Ryan Howard hits a lead-off home run, his thirty-sixth home run of the season. Then the rain came down, as the game is delayed twice, which would lead to the removal of Phils’ starter Pedro Martinez, who pitched two shut out innings before being replaced by Jamie Moyer, and Braves’ starter Tommy Hanson, who had given up the solo home run to Howard. The Phils, after play resumed, would increase their lead in the fourth as, with one man on, and with nobody out, hits a two-run home run, his thirty-seventh home run of the year, scoring Chase Utley, who had earlier singled, making it a 3-0 Phils’ lead. The Braves would get a run back in the fifth as, with one man on, and with one man out, Matt Diaz hits an RBI double, knocking in Ryan Church, who had earlier hit an infield single, and had gone to second on third baseman Pedro Feliz’s throwing error. The Phils made it 4-1 in the seventh as, with a runner on third and with nobody out, Feliz hits an RBI single, knocking in Raul Ibanez, who had earlier tripled. In the eighth, the Braves would cut the Phils’ lead to 4-2 as, with runners on the corners, and with noone out, Chipper Jones hit into an RBI force out, 6-4, as Martin Prado, who had earlier singled, is forced out at second, while Diaz, who had earlier doubled, and then went to third on Prado’s single, scored, while Jones was safe at first. That would be the final score as Brad Lidge would pitch a 1-2-3 ninth, recording his twenty-sixth save of the season.

Pedro Martinez pitched a no-decision as he pitched two innings before being taken out of the game after two rain delays, giving up just one hit and a walk, while striking out a batter. Jamie Moyer got the win as he pitched four and a third innings, giving up a run on four hits, while he struck out five. His record is now 12-9 with a 5.12 ERA, his second win since going into the bullpen. Chan Ho Park recorded his ninth hold as he pitched two-thirds of an inning, getting out both batters that he would face, striking out one. Ryan Madson recorded his twenty-second hold as he gave up a run on three hits and a walk. Brad Lidge pitched a 1-2-3 inning, recording his twenty-sixth save of the year, striking out a batter. Tommy Hanson took the lost, as he pitched two innings, giving up a run on two hits, while striking out four. His record is now 9-3 with an ERA of 3.15. Kris Medlen also pitched two innings, giving up two runs on three hits, as he struck out two. Eric O’Flaherty pitched two scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk, as he struck out two. Peter Moylan pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits. Mike Gonzalez pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit and a walk.

The Phillies had nine hits in the game, with Ryan Howard leading the way, with a single and two home runs, a solo shot and a two-run bomb, accounting for three of the Phils’ runs, while raising his batting average to .272. Pedro Feliz followed with two hits, one of which was a double, as he knocked in the other Phils’ run. Chase Utley, Jayson Werth, Raul Ibanez and Carlos Ruiz had the other four Phils’ hits, with Ibanez’s hit being a triple. The win added some distance between the Phils and their nearest rivals in the East.

The Phillies (74-52, 1st) continues their home stand with the Braves (67-61, 2nd-T) with a night game tonight. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and the game will be started at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phils’ starter will be Cliff Lee (12-9 (5-0), 2.63 (0.68)), who is coming off a win against the Mets on August 24, as he pitched seven strong innings, giving up only two unearned runs on six hits, while striking out five, in the Phils’ 6-2 win. He will be trying to make it six wins in a row since being traded to the Phils. The Braves will counter with their ace Derek Lowe (12-8, 4.48), who is coming off a no-decision against the Marlins on August 23, where he pitched five innings, giving up three runs on nine hits and a walk, while striking out three, in the Braves’ 7-5 win. He will be trying to match Lee pitch for pitch, to give him his first lost in the NL. The Phillies will be trying to further increase their lead in the East, while at the same time putting an early dagger into the Braves pennant hopes.

A ninth inning blast off of the bat of Ryan Howard help to propel the Phils to a late inning win over the Braves, 3-2. Their present winning streak is up to four games, while they still lead the Marlins by four and a half games as they increased their lead over Atlanta to six games.

The Braves took a quick 1-0 lead in the first inning as, with a runner on base and with one out, Chipper Jones hits an RBI single, knocking in Nate McLouth, who had earlier doubled, and had gone on to third on Martin Prado’s ground out, 6-3. The Phils took the lead in the fourth as, with a runner on base, and with nobody out, Chase Utley hits a two-run bomb, his twenty-fourth home run of the season, knocking in Shane Victorino, who had earlier singled, giving the Phils a 2-1 lead. The Braves then tied the game up at two-all in their half of the fourth as, with a runner on base, and with two men out, Ryan Church hits a RBI double, knocking in Yunel Escobar, who had earlier reached base on a Pedro Feliz fielding error. The score would remain tied at 2-2 until the top of the ninth when, with the count 2-1, Ryan Howard hits a slider into center field to give the Phils the 3-2 lead. That would remain the final score as Brad Lidge was able to nail down his twenty-second save of the season, despite giving up a single to Adam LaRoche and a walk to pinch hitter Greg Norton, with two out, as he got McLouth to fly out to left for the final out.

Joe Blanton received a no-decision as he pitched seven strong innings, giving up only two runs on seven hits and a walk, while he struck out two. Ryan Madson got the win as he pitched a quick 1-2-3 inning. His record is now 4-4 with a 3.02 ERA. Brad Lidge recorded his twenty-second save of the season, as he gave up just one hit and a walk, while striking out one. Jair Jurrjens also got a no-decision as he pitched seven strong innings, giving up two runs on five hits and a walk, as he struck out six. Mike Gonzalez pitched a scoreless inning, giving up just one hit. Rafael Soriano took the lost as he pitched an inning, giving up a run on one hit, while striking out the side. His record is now 1-4 with an ERA of 2.55.

The Phils had only seven hits in the game, with Jayson Werth leading the way with two hits, both singles, as he raised his batting average to .262. Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and pinch hitter Ben Francisco followed with one hit apiece, with Rollins and Francisco’s hits being doubles, while Utley’s hit was a two-run home run and Howard’s hit was a solo home run. The Phils have so far won each of their games on the present road trip, in fact winning two very close games. They hope to continue to build on their lead over both the Braves and the rest of the NL East.

The Phillies (65-48, 1st) continue their three-games series with the Braves (60-55, 3rd) with an afternoon game that is being televised nationally by Fox Sports. The game will be played at Turner Field and will start at 4 pm Eastern. The Phils’ starter will be Cole Hamels (7-7, 4.77), who is coming off of a lost on August 8 to the Marlins, as he gave up four runs on five hits and four walks, as he struck out four in five and one-third innings of work in the Phils’ 6-4 lost. He will be trying to rebound from his last few bad outings. The Braves will counter with Kenshin Kawakami (5-9, 4.12), who is coming off a no-decision on August 8 against the Dodgers, where he pitched seven shutout innings, giving up just four hits and three walks, while striking out four, in the Braves’ 2-1 win. He will be trying to shut down the Phils again, like he did during his previous start against them in May. The Phils will be trying to build on their lead in the NL East, while attempting to bury the Braves deep in third place.

After losing a close one, the Phils lose badly while avoiding the added embarrassment of also being no-hitted, as they lose to the Braves, 11-1.

The Braves took the lead in the third as, with two men on, and one man out, Martin Prado hits a two-run double, scoring Braves’ starter Jair Jurrjens, who had earlier singled and had gone to second on Gregor Blanco’s single off of Phils’ starter Cole Hamels’ leg, and Blanco, who had just singled, giving Atlanta a 2-0 lead. One batter later, Chipper Jones hits an RBI single, scoring Prado, making it 3-0 Braves. The Phils got a run back in the fourth, where, with a runner on third and two men out, Greg Dobbs hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Jayson Werth, who had earlier walked, and then went all the way to third on Jurrjens’ throwing error when he tried to pick him off, making it a 3-1 Braves’ lead. From there, it would be all Atlanta. In the fifth, with two men on, and nobody out, Jones hits another two-run double, sending home Blanco, who had earlier walked and had gone to second on Prado’s single, making it a 5-1 Braves’ lead. Brain McCann then made it 6-1 with a RBI single, knocking in Jones. That would be it for Cole Hamels, as Charlie Manuel would come out of the dugout and replace him with Tyler Walker. Matt Diaz proceeded to greet Walker with a two-run home run, his fourth home run of the game, scoring McCann, and giving Atlanta a commanding 8-1 lead. Three batters later, now with two men out, Diory Hernandez hits a solo home run, his first home run of the season, and of his career, making it 9-1 Braves. Meanwhile, Jurrjens was going through the Phils’ line-up, not giving up a hit until the seventh when, with two men out, Paul Bako broke up the no-hitter attempt with a single. In the eighth, the Braves would increase their lead as, with two men on, and two men out, pinch hitter Yunel Escobar hits an RBI single, scoring Hernandez, who had earlier reached base on a Pedro Feliz’s fielding error, and then moved up to second on a Blanco’s ground out, 6-3, giving the Braves a 10-1 lead, while sending Prado, who had earlier walked, over to third. McCann then followed with an RBI single, scoring Prado, giving Atlanta an 11-1 lead, while sending Escobar to second. That would be the final score as the Phils would go down 1-2-3 in the ninth.

Cole Hamels took the lost, as he went only four innings, giving up seven runs on nine hits and two walks, while he struck out only one. His record is now 4-5 with an ERA of 4.98. Tyler Walker pitched two innings, giving up two runs on two hits, as he struck out a batter. Sergio Escalona pitched a scoreless inning, giving up only one hit, as he struck out one. Jack Taschner pitched an inning, giving up two runs on two hits and a walk, while striking out two. Jair Jurrgens picked up the win as he pitched a strong game, giving up only a run on a hit and four walks, while he struck out six. His record is now 6-6 with an ERA of 2.73. Kris Medlen and Manny Acosta each pitched a scoreless inning, giving up only one hit (Medlen), while striking out one (Acosta) between them.

The Phillies only had two hits in the game, both singles. One was by Paul Bako, who broke up Jurrjens’ no-hitter attempt, and the other was by Shane Victorino. Greg Dobbs knocked in the Phils’ only run, bringing in Jayson Werth via a sacrifice fly, without a hit, thanks to a two-base throwing error by Jurrjens when he tried to pick-off Werth at first base after walking him. The Phillies’ offense seems to have hit the skids, while starting pitching isn’t pitching very deep into games, with the bullpen it hurting as a result. Something have got to give soon, although I have to agree with one of the announcers during last night’s game saying that dropping out of first place might be the best thing for the Phils at the moment, as it would give them something to shoot for again.

The Phils (39-36, 1st) will conclude their losing road trip with one final game with the Braves (37-40, 4th). The game will be played at Turner Field and will start at 7:00 pm Eastern time. The Phillies will send to the mound J.A. Happ (5-0, 3.00) who is coming off a complete game shut out win against the Blue Jays on June 27, where he gave up only 5 hits while striking out four, in the Phils’ 10-0 blow out win. He will be going for his sixth win of the year, his fourth since being put into the rotation, while trying to avoid a series sweep for the Phils. The Braves will counter with Javier Vazquez (5-7, 3.04), who is coming off a lost against the Red Sox, where he went seven and two-thirds innings, giving up only a run on six hits and three walks, as he struck out eight, in the Braves’ 1-0 lost. He will be hoping to get some runs support from the Braves, while hoping to add to the Phils’ offensive woes. The Phils’ lead in the National League East is now down to a half-game over the Marlins.

The Phillies lose in extra-innings as the bullpen blows yet another lead in the late innings, as the Phils lose their first game in a year to the Braves in Atlanta, 5-4.

The Phils took an early lead in the third as, with two men on base, and two men out, Ryan Howard hits a ground-rule double, knocking in Shane Victorino, who had earlier singled and had gone to third on Chase Utley’s single, making it 1-0 Phils, while sending Utley over to third. The Braves would tie the game up at one-all in their half of the third as, with a runner on third and nobody out, Martin Prado hits an RBI single, scoring Gregor Blanco, who had earlier tripled. The Phils regain the lead in the fifth as, with two men out, Utley hits a solo home run, his seventeenth home run of the year, to give the Phils a 2-1 lead. The Braves would tie the game up with one swing of the bat in their half of the inning as Prado hits a lead-off home run, his fourth home run of the season. Five batters later, with the bases loaded, via singles to Chipper Jones and Garret Anderson and a walk to Casey Kotchman, and with one man out, Jeff Francoeur hits an RBI ground out, 4-3, for the inning’s second out, scoring Jones and giving the Braves a 3-2 lead, while moving both Anderson and Kotchman up a base. The Phils tied it in the eighth as, with two men out, John Mayberry, Jr., hit a pinch hit home run, his fourth home run of the season. The Phils then retook the lead as Pedro Feliz followed Mayberry with a solo home run of his own, his fifth home run of the season, giving the Phils a 4-3 lead. The Braves would tie the game up yet again in their half of the inning, as, with a runner on second, and with two men out, Prado hits an RBI double, scoring Blanco, who had earlier reached base with a walk, and had then gone to second on Ryan Madson’s throwing error when he tried to pick off Blanco at first, while Prado would go on to third when Jayson Werth misplayed the ball for a fielding error. The Braves won the game in the tenth inning as, with runners on second and third, with one out, and with both the infield and outfield in to stop the winning run from scoring, Prado hits an RBI single over Mayberry’s head in left, scoring Matt Diaz, who had earlier singled and then went to third on Blanco’s single, beating Mayberry’s throw to third, giving the Braves a 5-4 extra-innings, walk-off win.

Joe Blanton got a no-decision, as he pitched five innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and three walks, while striking out three. Chad Durbin pitched two scoreless innings, giving up only one hit. Ryan Madson committed his fourth blown save, giving up a run on one hit and two walks, while striking out one. J.C. Romero pitched a 1-2-3 inning. Chan Ho Park took the lost as he gave up a run on three hits, as he struck out one, in one-third innings. His record is now 3-2 with a 6.04 ERA. Derek Lowe also received a no-decision as he pitched six innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and three walks, striking out four. Eric O’Flaherty pitched an inning, getting his eighth hold, as he pitched a 1-2-3 inning. Mike Gonzalez recorded his fourth blown save, as he gave up two runs on two hits, while striking out a batter. Rafael Soriano pitched a 1-2-3 inning, striking out one. Boone Logan pitched a third of an inning, giving up a hit. Peter Moylan got the win, as he pitched two-thirds of an inning, getting out the two men that he would face. His record is now 2-2 with an ERA of 4.15.

The Phils had ten hits in the game, with Pedro Feliz leading the way with three hits, including a solo home run, knocking in a run, as he raised his average to .295. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard both followed with two hits each, with both men knocking in a run, Utley via a solo home run and Howard with a ground-rule double. Shane Victorino, Greg Dobbs and John Mayberry, Jr. had the other three Phils’ hits, with Mayberry’s being a pinch hit home run. The Phils offense is still somewhat in neutral as they wait for Raul Ibanez to return from the disabled list and their lead-off man, Jimmy Rollins to get it in gear as his batting average continue to go low.

The Phillies (39-35, 1st) continue their three-games series with the Braves (36-40, 4th) with a game tonight. The game will be played at Turner Field and it will start at 7:00 pm Eastern. The Phils will send to the mound their ace Cole Hamel (4-4, 4.44), who is cioming off one of his worst starts this season, as he lost to the Blue Jays on June 26, as he went only four and two-thirds innings, giving up four runs on eight hits and two walks, while striking out four, in the Phils’ 6-1 lost. He will be going out to prove that he is indeed the Phils’ ace starter. The Braves will counter with Jair Jurrjens (5-6, 2.93), who is coming off a lost to the Red Sox on June 26, as he went eight innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and three walks, while striking out three, in the Braves’ 4-1 lost. He wil be trying to rebound from that lost. The Phils as a team now need to forget about June and try to put together a winning streak before the All-Star break, trying to put some serious distance between themselves and the rest of the division. But, they need to start it with a win tonight, and Hamels will have to lead the way by shutting the Braves down, no ifs, ands, or buts about it!!!!

For his second straight start, Brett Myers will be unable to get through the fifth inning as the Braves would bust the game wide open on a Chipper Jones’ pinch hit three-run home run in a six run fifth, as the Phillies fall to the Braves, 10-4. A Mets lost to the Cubs in extra-innings still leaves the Phillies ahead in the East by a game and a half while the magic number to clinch the East drops down to three. The Braves would score first in the first inning as, with two men on and no one out, Martin Prado would hit a RBI single, scoring Josh Anderson, who has earlier doubled, giving the Braves a 1-0 lead, while sending Kelly Johnson, who has earlier singled, to move on to second base. One out later, after Johnson has stolen third, as Brain McCann strikes out, to put runners on the corners, Casey Kotchman would make it 2-0 Braves, as he would hit a RBI single, scoring Johnson, and sending Prado to third. Phillies’ starter Brett Myers would finally get out of the inning by getting Omar Infante to hit into a double play, 1-6-3, cutting down Kotchman at second. The Phillies would get a run back in the second as, with runners on the corners and one man out, Pedro Feliz would hit a RBI single, scoring Pat Burrell, who has earlier doubled and has went to third on Shane Victorino’s ground ball to Braves’ second baseman Johnson, who would then commit a fielding error that would allow Victorino to reach base, making it 2-1 Braves, while Victorino would go to second. Chris Coste would then end the inning by hitting into a 6-4-3 double play, cutting down Feliz at second. The Braves would make it 3-1 in the third, as, with a runner on third and one out, Kotchman would hit into an out to Ryan Howard, for the second out of the inning, scoring McCann, who has earlier doubled, and has gone to third as Jayson Werth threw out Prado, who has earlier singled, when he tried to score on McCann’s double, with Coste supplying the tag, for the inning’s first out. The Phillies would get it back in their half of the third, when, with two outs, Chase Utley would hit a solo home run, his thirty-third home run of the year, cutting the lead to 3-2 Braves. The Phillies would tie it up in the fourth as Howard would hit a lead off home run, his forty-seventh home run of the year. Burrell would then follow with a double. After a Victorino fly out to right would move Burrell to third, Braves’ manager Bobby Cox would come out and relieve Braves’ starter Jo-Jo Reyes and replace him with Buddy Carlyle. Carlyle would then proceed to strand Burrell at third as he first get Feliz to strike out for the inning’s second out and then get Coste to end the inning by grounding out, 6-3. The Braves would then retake the lead in the fifth. After getting the lead-off batter to fly out, Myers would give up a walk to Prado. McCann would follow with a RBI double, scoring Prado, and giving the Braves a 4-3 lead. After Myers intentionally walk Kotchman, Charlie Manuel would take out Myers and replace him with Chad Durbin. Durbin would get the next batter, Infante, to hit a grounder to Howard. Instead of getting the sure out at first, Howard would throw to second, trying to force out Kotchman. Sadly, the plan backfired as the ball hit Kotchman and would go into right field, allowing McCann to score, making it a 5-3 Braves’ lead, with Kotchman safe at second and Infante on first thanks to Howard’s throwing error. This would become important as Durbin would strike out Jeff Francoeur for the inning’s second out, as it could’ve been the inning’s final out if Howard had gone to first and not second, leaving the Phillies’ trailing by one run. The next batter, Brandon Jones would then hit a RBI single, scoring Kotchman, giving the Braves a 6-3 lead and putting Infante on second. Chipper Jones is then sent out to pitch hit for Carlyle. Durbin is then replaced with Scott Eyre, whom the Phillies hope would be able to handle C. Jones. Sadly, he would not as C. Jones would hit a 2-1 fastball into the left field seats for a three-run home run, his twenty-second home run of the year, knocking in both Infante and B. Jones, and giving the Braves a 9-3 lead. Eyre would then end the inning by striking out Anderson. That six run fifth inning would seem to take the fight out of the Phillies, as they would be unable to mount anything against the Braves’ relievers. The Braves, in the meantime, would tack on an extra run in the eighth, as, with a runner on second and two outs, Prado would hit a RBI single, scoring Anderson, who has earlier walked, and has stolen second, to give the Braves a 10-3 lead, The Phillies would get a run back in their half of the eighth, as, with runners on second and third, and one out, Burrell, who has earlier walked, would score on McCann’s pass ball, making it a 10-4 Braves’ lead, and sending Victorino, who has earlier double, to move to third. But that was where he would stay as Braves’ reliever Julian Taveraz would strike out pinch hitter Greg Dobbs for the inning’s second out and then strikes out pinch hitter Matt Stairs to end the inning. The Phillies would then go down 1-2-3 in the ninth to end the ballgame.

Brett Myers would take the lost as he would only be able to go four and one third innings, giving up six run, four of which were earned, on ten hits. His record is now 10-13 with a 4.55 ERA. Chad Durbin would pitch a third of an inning, giving up two runs, neither of which were earned, on one hit while striking out a batter. Scott Eyre would pitch and inning and a third, giving up an earned run on two hits. Rudy Seanez would pitch a scoreless inning, giving up no hits. J.C. Romero would pitch an inning, giving up an earned run on one hit. Clay Condrey would pitch a scoreless inning, giving up a hit. Jo-Jo Reyes would get a no decision, as he pitches three and a third innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits. Buddy Carlyle would get the win as he goes two-thirds of an inning, giving up no runs on no hits. His record is now 2-0 with a 3.77 ERA. Vladimir Nunez would pitch a scoreless inning, giving up no hits. Jorge Julio would also pitch a scoreless inning, giving up a hit. Julian Taveraz would pitch an inning, giving up an unearned run on one hit and a walk. Manny Acosta would pitch a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

The Phillies’ offense has once again gone silent for most of the night, being unable to do any real damage on Jo-Jo Reyes before he got yanked in the bottom of the fourth inning, and then being kept quiet for most of the night by the Braves’ bullpen. Of course, Brett Myers being unable to put down the Braves earlier in the night didn’t help matters and Ryan Howard’s fielding blunder of throwing to second base for the force instead of going to first for the sure out would open up the flood gates that would turn the game into a blow out in the fifth inning thanks to Chipper Jones’ pinch hit three-run home run. Sigh, I hate reruns like this. I wonder why this team never make pennant winning easy or fast. Luckily, a Mets’ lost to the Cubs in extra-innings has dropped the Phillies magic number down to three. Anyway, with the day off today they should be able to regroup and forget this series before they meet the Nationals for the final three games of the season, starting tomorrow, weather permitting, as a big storm is heading in the direction of both Philadelphia and New York, which could play a factor in both the Phillies-Nationals and the Mets-Marlins series. I guess we’ll see what develops by friday night.

The Phillies are still a game and a half ahead of the Mets as they lost to the Cubs in extra-innings, with one more game to play in their four games series tonight. In the Wild Card chase, the Mets and the Brewers are now tied for the lead as the Brew Crew defeated the Pirates, with one more game left in their series. This bring up several interesting scenarios for the start of tomorrow night’s series (Phillies-Nationals, Mets-Marlins, Brewers-Cubs): 1) A Mets lost to the Cubs and a Brewers lost to the Pirates would place the Mets two games behind the Phillies and leaving both teams two games behind the Phillies in the wild card (the best of the four scenarios); 2) A Mets lost and a Brewers victory would put the Mets two games behind the Phillies and a game behind the Brewers in the wild card (the preferred scenario as it would force the Mets to get past two teams); 3) A Mets win and a Brewers lost would put the Mets a game behind the Phillies and a game ahead of the Brewers (bad, as it will put the pressure back on the Phillies to try to win two against the pesky Nationals); and 4) both the Mets and the Brewers win, putting the Mets a game behind in the East and both teams a game behind the Phillies in the wild card (very bad as the Phllies will have to worry about both teams). While I prefer scenario number two, I would rather the Phillies would just go out and cream the Nationals and let everything else just sort itself out.

A throwing error by Cole Hamels, the lack of a clutch hit with the bases loaded and a base running error in the sixth would all lead to a hard lose as the Phillies lose a close one to the Braves, 3-2. The Mets’ win against the Cubs cuts the Phils lead in the East down to a game and a half and leaves the magic number for winning the East at four while a Brewers’ win leave the playoff magic number at one.

The Braves took the lead in the first as, with a runner on second and one out, Kelly Johnson would hit a RBI single, scoring Martin Prado, who has earlier singled, giving the Braves a quick 1-0 lead. The Phillies would tie up the game in the second as, with a runner on third and two outs, Pedro Feliz would hit a RBI single, scoring Ryan Howard, who has earlier singled, went to second on Pat Burrell’s walk and would go to third on Shane Victorino’s 4-6-3 double play ball, which wiped out Burrell at second. The Braves would retake the lead in the third as, with runners on first and second and two out, Coel Hamels would have Johnson, who has gotten on base earlier with a single and then would move to second on Omar Infante’s single, picked off as Johnson was trying to steal third. But, Hamels’ throw to Feliz at third would go behind the third baseman and into left field, allowing Johnson to score and make it 2-1 Braves. The Phillies would threaten to even the score in their half of the third as they loaded up the bases with a double (Chase Utley), a throwing error by Johnson (Jayson Werth) and a walk (Howard), with two men out. But Braves’ starter Mike Hampton would end the threat by getting Burrell to pop out to the third baseman. The Braves would increase their lead in the sixth, as, with two outs, Casey Kotchman would hit a solo home run, his fourteenth home run of the year, making it 3-1 Braves. The Phillies would get a run base in their half of the sixth, as, with a runner on third and no one out, Pat Burrell would hit a RBI double, scoring Howard, who has earlier tripled, to make it a 3-2 Braves’ lead. Then Burrell would make a crucial base running blunder as, when Shane Victorino hit a hard ground to Braves’ shortstop Brent Lillibridge, instead of going back to second, as he should’ve done, he would be caught off second and then be run down before finally being tagged out by Johnson, with the play going 6-5-4, with Victorino being safe at first on the fielder’s choice. Later, with Feliz batting, Victorino would try to steal second. He would be thrown out by Braves’ catcher Brian McCann for the inning’s second out as Johnson supplies the tag. Feliz would then end the inning by grounding out, 6-3. The Burrell base running blunder would seems to take the wind out of the Phillies’ sails for the rest of the night as they would be unable to mount another threat as the game ended up being a win for the Braves.

Cole Hamels would take the lost as he pitched seven innings, giving up three runs, only two of which were earned, on eight hits, as he struck out seven. His record is now 14-10 with an ERA of 3.09. Scott Eyre, Chad Durbin and J.C. Romero would combine for two scoreless innings, giving up no hits between them, while striking out one (Romero). Mike Hampton would get the win as he pitches six innings, giving up two earned runs on six hits. His record is now even at 3-3 with a 4.88 ERA. Will Ohman and Jeff Bennett would each pitch a scoreless inning, with both man giving up no hits while Bennett would walk a batter. Mike Gonzalez would record his fourteenth save of the year as he pitches a scoreless ninth, giving up no hits as he walked a batter and struck out one.

The Phillies would get done in by the kind of mistakes that they have been avoiding lately, namely a throwing error by Cole Hamels when he had Kelly Johnson dead to rights when Johnson was trying to steal third, being unable to get the clutch hit when they needed it after they had loaded up the bases and Pat Burrell’s base running blunder with no one out. With Hamels’ errant throw, even with his throwing behind Pedro Feliz, if the throw has gone into Feliz’s glove, and Johnson has been safe at third, the Braves would have been turned back as Hamels then struck out Casey Kotchman to end the inning, keeping the game tied at 1-1. This might have been the turning point of the game, as the Phillies, in the later half of the inning, would mount a bases loaded threat that would be turned back because of a pop up into foul territory by Pat Burrell that was caught by Braves’ third baseman Martin Prado. But what really killed the Phillies was Burrell’s later base running blunder in the sixth. With the play in front of him, he should’ve went back to second when Braves’ shortstop Brent Lillibridge caught Shane Victorino’s hard ground ball. Instead, he allowed himself to get trapped between second and third, and then compounded things by not staying in the base paths long enough to allow Victornio to get to second base. An added insult would be Braves’ catcher Brian McCann throwing out Victorino when Victorino tried to steal second. Hopefully the Phillies will be able to bounce back from the lost and win tonight’s game with the Braves.

The Phillies (89-69) will play the final game of their three games home stand with the Braves (70-88) tonight. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and will begin at 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies’ starter will be Brett Myers (10-12, 4.46), who is coming off his worst outing since his return from the minors, as he lost to the Marlins on September 20, where he only went four innings plus five batters, giving up ten earned runs on nine hits, in the Phillies’ 14-8 lost. Myers should be able to come back from that start, like his did in his previous start against the Brewers on September 14, where he pitched a complete game shut out, after his lost to the Marlins on September 10. The lost makes Myers 7-3 since his return. He will be trying for his eleventh win overall while getting the Phillies a bit closer to the playoff with four games left to play. The Braves will oppose him with Jo-Jo Reyes (3-11, 5.74), who is coming off a recent no-decision against the Mets on September 19, where he only lasted three and a third innings, giving up five earned runs on seven hits, in the Braves’ 9-5 lost. Against the Phillies this year, he has appeared in three games, two of them starts, where his record is 0-2 with a 7.56 ERA, hoping that he won’t get bombed again by the Phillies’ bats as he starts against them.

The lost would cut the Phillies’ lead over the Mets down to a game and a half as the Mets defeated the Cubs. The magic number for the Division crown is still at four. In the Wild Card chase, the Mets’ lead is still a game over the Brewers as they defeated the Pirates, while their lead over the Astros is now four and a half as they lost to the Reds. The Phillies will be trying to recover from last night’s lost, hoping for another good outing from Myers while hoping to once again sting Reyes and send the Braves packing with another lost.

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